Winch tension camping cot

ABSTRACT

A foldable camping cot of the variety used by the United State Army today without the structural bars at the head and foot of the cot. The cot is held open by at least one winch ( 20 ) attached near parallel bars. The winch ( 20 ) pulls on a strap ( 25 ) which is attached to a hook ( 30 ) that is engaged to an eyelet ( 35 ) that is attached to the distal end of the leg ( 45 ) of the cot. The tension provided by the winch ( 20 ) makes the sleeping surface ( 15 ) taut.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Provision Patent Application # 61/210,609

BACKGROUND

1. Field of Invention

This invention relates to a type of portable foldable camping cot commonly referred to as, “army cot.” Heretofore, the type of cot in question shall be referred to as, “army cot.” The army cot was the ubiquitous camping cot that had the familiar X-shaped legs that pivot about their mutual center. The army cot is still used by the United States

Army today.

2. Description of Prior Art

Unlike other cots, the army cot had the distinct advantage of folding for storage along its width as well as along its length. As far as known, the army cot always had three pairs of legs per cot. The mechanical components of the cot made of specially shaped brackets worked with the three pairs of legs to fold the cot into a compact portable shape. The army cot has not changed for the longest time.

Unfortunately, the army cot always was plagued with the problem of drooping in the middle area of the sleeping surface. This was because army cot was held open only by a bar at one end of the cot, where the pillow goes, and another bar at the opposite end, where the feet of a camper goes. There was nothing holding the middle of the cot open. A sleeping surface with a saggy middle was the result.

In order to get the sleeping surface of the army cot taut, the top and bottom bars that hold the cot open had to be forced in by hand onto dowels in the frame. Genuine U.S. Army issued army cots apparently deliberately were designed to provide a very taut sleeping surface. Unfortunately, this meant that genuine U.S. Army cots were extremely difficult to set up and still are today. Setting the top and bottom bars into place requires enormous arm strength as anybody who has set up a genuine U.S. Army issued army cot knows.

There is no telling when the first foldable piece of furniture used two rods joined together by a pivot about their mutual middle to form the legs of a furniture. Stools with legs that fold in such a manner have been around for hundreds if not thousands of years.

A patent search was not successful in finding a particular inventor of the army cot as still used by the United States Army today. Perhaps a patent was never filed.

U.S. Pat. No. 1,577,204 of Mar. 16, 1926 to Mansell A. Davis may show a variation of the army cot. U.S. Pat. No. 5,109,556 of May 5, 1992 to David G. Cook shows a cot that addresses the problem of surface tension. Side rails are pulled apart using mechanical means. The cot, however, was not really in the same category as the army cot. It did not have the familiar X-shaped legs and could not be folded like the army cot. U.S Pat. No. 5,611,414 of Mar. 18, 1997 to Jeffrey R. Walker shows a cot that is contained in a suitcase. This cot was foldable and portable but was not as compact as the army cot of today. U.S. Pat. No. 6,763,534 of Jul. 20, 2004 to Joo-Hwan Hwang shows a complex cot with a plurality of struts that folds up compactly. The cot folded up like a compact umbrella but did not address the problem of sagging. The cot was also complicated in design. U.S. Pat. No. 6,364,410 of Apr. 2, 2002 to Larry Tang shows another cot with a plurality of struts.

None of the cot designs described above fall within the category of the army cot of today. The present army cot design as used by the United State Army and imitated by retailers still has the advantage of compactness, portability, and ruggedness because of the simplicity of its structural design. The present invention retains the basic design of the army cot of today but improves upon it by eliminating the problem of sagging. The present invention also eliminates the very difficult operation of setting the top and bottom bars into place.

SUMMARY

In accordance with the present invention, a foldable cot comprises winch(es) to make taut its sleeping surface.

Objects and Advantages

Accordingly, several objects and advantages of the present inventions are:

(a) to provide a cot with support for the middle of the sleeping surface;

(b) to provide a cot that will not sag in the middle over prolonged use;

(c) to provide a cot easier to setup and dismantle;

(d) to provide a cot that uses a winch in the middle of the cot for support;

(e) to provide a cot that uses the power of a mechanical winch to make the sleeping surface more taut;

(f) to provide a cot that eliminates the top bar and the bottom bar;

(g) to retain the basic design of the army cot used by the United States Army and imitated by retailers.

DRAWING FIGURES

FIG. 1 shows an isometric view of the present invention.

REFERENCE NUMERALS IN DRAWINGS

10 parallel bars 35 eyelet

15 canvas 40 pivot

20 ratchet 45 rod leg

25 ratchet strap 50 rod arm 30 hook

Description—FIG. 1—Most Preferred Embodiment

A presently most preferred embodiment of the cot of the present invention is illustrated in FIG. 1. A canvas (15) is spread out and connected to a pair of parallel bars (10) made of aluminum tubing which is mutually connected to pairs of rods (45, 50), also made of aluminum tubing, of the cot. They are connected using brackets and fasteners that allow said parallel bars (10) and said rods (45,50) to pivot against each other for folding and unfolding as commonly done with army style cots for decades. Said rods (45,50) are connected together about their mutual middles by a pivot (40) which comprises a fasterner, such as a rivet. In the presently most preferred embodiment, said middles of said rods (45,50) are shaped so that one rod fits over the other rod in a pair of rods just like in the traditional army cot. Said rods (45,50) have a curved shape to accommodate folding and unfolding of the cot. At one distal end of said pairs of rods (45,50) is installed a winch (20). Said winch, such as the ubiquitous strap ratchet, has the usual ratchet strap (25) and hook (30). Such strap ratchets are sold in hardware retailers everywhere. Said hook (30) is inserted through an eyelet (35) connected to a distal end of a leg (45) of said rods (45,50).

Operation of the Most Preferred Embodiment—FIG. 1

The user unfolds and sets up the cot on the ground in the same manner conventional army cots are unfolded. The user inserts hooks (30) into the eyes (35) and cranks the strap ratchets (20) until the sleeping surface (15) is taut. When done using the cot, the user releases the strap ratchets (20) in the usual manner strap ratchets are undone and takes the hooks out of the eyes (35). The cot then can be folded back up for transport in the usual manner as done with army style cots.

Figs—Alternative Embodiments

In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, a simple cam buckle with no ratcheting mechanism serves as a winch. The pulling strap has a loop for grabbing and pulling by hand or even foot.

Operation of the Alternative Embodiments

An user applies hooks to the anchors at the distal end of the legs. An user then grabs the pulling strap and tightens the cam buckle. A user may put his or her foot into a handle loop and use bodyweight to tighten the cam buckle.

Conclusion, Ramifications, and Scope

Accordingly, the scope of the invention should be determined not by the embodiment(s) illustrated, but by the appended claims and their legal equivalents. 

1. A foldable cot for outdoors camping comprising, fabric sheet material flatly drawn between one pair of parallel bars, first of said pair somewhat perpendicularly connected to a first distal end of a first pair of struts, second of said pair of parallel bars likewise perpendicularly connected to a second distal end of said first pair of struts, said struts in said first pair of struts mutually connected to each other at the centers of their lengths by a fastener pivot, an any first of the four distal ends, that is, a single pair of struts naturally comprising a total of four distal ends, of said first pair of struts, comprising, a winch comprising, a winching line comprising at its end opposite to said winch, a first part of an interlocking means, said cot furthermore comprising, a second distal end of said four distal ends of said first pair of struts, being located on the same side as said winch along the imaginary vertical axis of said fastener pivot and at the same time being located on the opposite side from said winch along the imaginary horizontal axis of said fastener pivot, comprising, a second part of said interlocking means, said one pair of parallel bars being connected, in the same manner but at different locations along its length, to additional pairs of struts comparable to said first pair of struts, but not necessarily comprising additional said winch, said winching line, or said interlocking means; whereby the sleeping surface of said cot is tensioned using winches.
 2. The claim of 1 wherein said winch comprises a section of said parallel bars.
 3. The claim of 1 wherein said second part of said interlocking means comprises a passage means for said winching line.
 4. The claim of 1 wherein said winch comprises a webbing strap ratchet.
 5. The claim of 1 wherein said winch comprises a cam buckle.
 6. The claim of 1 wherein said winch comprises a hoist pulley.
 7. The claim of 1 wherein said interlocking means comprises a hook.
 8. The claim of 1 wherein said interlocking means comprises a carabiner.
 9. The claim of 1 wherein said fabric sheet material comprises a camping tent.
 10. The claim of 1 wherein said strut comprises metal tubing.
 11. The claim of 1 wherein said winch comprises a simple fastener.
 12. The claim of 1 wherein said winch comprises a mechanical cam.
 13. The claim of 1 wherein each parallel bar of said pair of parallel bars comprises multiple sections.
 14. A method for providing tension in the sleeping surface of a foldable cot providing, a fabric sheet material means drawn between, a pair of parallel bars means somewhat normally connected to, far ends of multiple pairs of elongated rod means respectively, each pair of said rod means providing a fastener pivot means at their mutual middles, a first far end of said rod means comprising, a winch comprising, a length of pulling material comprising at its distal end a first part of an interconnecting means, a second far end of said rod means providing, on the same side of a spatially vertical axis emanating from said pivot means as said winch and on the opposite side of a spatially horizontal axis emanating from said pivot means from said winch, comprising, a second part of said interlocking means; whereby sleeping surface of said cot can be stretched taut using winches. 